(Cover image – © Pinterest)
Due to Henry VIII’s second wife, Anne, many people across the world feel well-acquainted and familiar with the name ‘Boleyn’. As perhaps one of Henry’s most famous wives, it is easy to believe that Anne came from an age-old, well-established noble family, with ties linking back to William the Conqueror and beyond…
However, surprisingly, Henry and Anne’s marriage was actually one of the most ‘notorious’{1} things to happen to the Boleyn family, where they ‘reached the peak of their influence’ {2} and, following Anne’s death, fell into disaster.
But where did the Boleyns come from? Why did they rise in station? And how did Anne have enough social standing to marry a king?
According to historians, the history of the rise of the Boleyn family begins with a man named Sir Geoffrey (the great-grandfather of Anne Boleyn), who was the son of two members of the parish gentry in Norfolk. Whilst there is nothing much of note about Geoffrey’s birth, it is said that he grew to be an ambitious young man and managed to climb up the social ladder in his 57-years of life.
In his younger years, Geoffrey started off as a hatter’s apprentice in London - a good career for someone of his social standing - but soon transferred to a livery company as he devoted his efforts to the art of Mercery, whereby he may have thought this had better prospects and could develop his local connections. Later in his life, Geoffrey became an alderman (a member of local government) and served as Sheriff of London between 1446-7 {1}. In 1457, Sir Geoffrey became the Lord Mayor of London.
Whilst his fortunes had risen quite substantially in quite a short period of time, it wasn’t until Geoffrey got married that his station significantly improved. Around 1448, Geoffrey married a lady named Anne, who was the daughter and co-heir of Thomas, Lord Hoo and Hastings, a member of the aristocracy. In lieu of this marriage, in 1462, Geoffrey was made acting trustee of the Hoo estates.
In the same year, Geoffrey purchased the glorious Hever Castle in Kent, which became the seat of the Boleyn family until 1539 {3}.
Due to Geoffrey’s social standing and business ventures, he had gained substantial wealth for himself and his family. In fact, there is even evidence that he loaned money to the King of the time! {1}
Upon his death in 1463, having accumulated several estates and land during his life, Geoffrey’s wealth eventually passed to his son, William.
William Boleyn was born in 1451 to Geoffrey and Anne, and was lucky enough to inherit the fortune of both his mother and father’s family. Whilst William did not ever achieve a position at court, he did - on occasion - serve kings and fellow nobility, keeping on the good side of both Richard III and, later, Henry VII. In addition, due to the properties under his ownership, William served as both the Sheriff of Kent and the Sheriff of Norfolk and Suffolk for a time.
Not unlike his father, William did manage to secure a good marriage for himself which saw his fortune rise. In 1475, William wed Margaret Butler, the daughter and co-heiress of Thomas Butler {1}, the 7th Earl of Ormond. As part of her marriage settlement, she brought the manor of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire to her husband {4}.
Suspiciously, historians remain uncertain of how William managed to navigate the turbulent politics of the Wars of the Roses in order to remain in favour of both the defeated York King Richard and then King Henry VII. William’s part in the notorious Battle of Bosworth, where Richard was defeated, remains unclear, but how he could have avoided it is unknown {1}. Whilst it appears that William would have laid low after this battle, it seems that he never received a pardon and that he remained in good standing under the new king Henry.
William’s eldest son, Thomas Boleyn, was born in 1477. As a young man, it is said that Thomas was ‘active’ in the court of King Henry VII, often attending ceremonies and events, and acquainting himself with those in court. When Thomas was around eighteen years old, his father’s friendship with Thomas Howard, Earl of Surrey, had blossomed, and it was arranged that Thomas Boleyn would marry Thomas Howard’s daughter, Elizabeth.
This marriage brought the Boleyns into the family circle of one of the greatest noble houses in England - an almost unbelievable achievement from where the family started. This was the foundation of the fortune and misfortune which subsequently befell the Boleyns {1}.
From here, Thomas Boleyn lived an exciting life and brought his family name closer to the King’s court than it had ever been before. He attended the wedding of Prince Arthur to Catherine of Aragon, he escorted Margaret Tudor to Scotland as she was due to wed King James IV, and he was made a Knight of the Bath at the coronation of Henry VIII in 1509 {5}.
Thomas was charismatic and had established political connections across the land and beyond, meaning that he quickly became one of Henry VIII’s leading diplomats {5}. Thomas was even made a Knight of the Garter, a hugely important title which marked honour and loyalty, in 1523.
Circa.1507, Thomas’s daughter Anne was born, and the tragic tale of her life remains famous today.
As a young girl, Anne had a position in court due to her father’s role and social standing. It was in this capacity that she caught the attention of the king, Henry VIII, who was already married to Catherine of Aragon.
Henry’s marriage did not deter him from pursuing Anne, and when she refused to become his mistress (Henry was used to getting his own way!), he focused his attention on doing everything he could to annul his marriage to Catherine. As we know, this proposition was refused by the Pope on behalf of the Catholic Church, which led Henry to break away from Catholicism and create the Church of England.
The entire nation was suddenly thrown into disarray, all because of Henry’s infatuation with a Boleyn!
Henry formally married Anne on the 25 January 1533, subsequently meaning that the Boleyn family profited also. For example, Anne’s father was made Earl of Wiltshire, an important and well-established title.
Whilst Henry and Anne were allegedly happy for a time, things between them turned sour as Anne struggled to produce a son and heir. Anne had given Henry a daughter, Elizabeth, but Henry’s disappointment and desire for a son was overwhelming. After Henry’s jousting accident in 1536, Anne unfortunately miscarried a son, and it is said that Henry’s personality changed so drastically that he became quite the tyrant.
After this, Anne’s relationship with the king was very strained. He became suspicious and paranoid, eventually accusing her of adultery and treason.
Whilst the Boleyn line did not end with Anne, the ‘fame and fortune’ that had cast her family into the light of nobility, surely did. Anne’s ‘betrayal’ of Henry led to her trial and execution in 1536, and her father, Thomas, was replaced in many of his duties to the King and left in disgrace. Having lost several of his titles and place at court, Thomas died in 1539 and was buried at Hever.
Overall, the history of the Boleyn family is certainly an interesting one, and it is incredible that this family climbed so high within the nobility of England. However, it is interesting that much of this rise in station came through marriage, with each Boleyn profiting by wedding someone of higher social standing.
Unfortunately, it may be poor Anne who suffered the most from her marriage. Whilst she and her family made a huge gain in the short term, Anne’s controversial royal marriage inevitably led to the downfall of the Boleyn name.
References:
The Boleyns: The Rise & Fall of a Tudor Family By David Loades
Jenkins, Simon. (2003). Discover Britain’s historic houses.
Parker, J. ‘The Manor of Aylesbury’, Archaelogia L (London 1887).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Boleyn,_1st_Earl_of_Wiltshire
Comments